450 Storylines: Southwick Recap
JETT LAWRENCE: Extended his points lead to 38 with his 20th career 450 Class victory, tying James Stewart for seventh all-time. The victory doubles as his 60th career SMX League* win, 1 behind Chad Reed and Rick Johnson for eighth all-time. His 20th career 450 Class podium (27th all-time) and 79th SMX League podium places him top 25 all-time on the SMX League podiums list, tied with Ezra Lusk. With 20 victories in 21 career starts, Lawrence has amassed an unprecedented 95% winning percentage in the premier division.
HUNTER LAWRENCE: Second straight runner-up finish came with 2-2 scores for his 12th 450 Class podium (43rd all-time) and 60th SMX League podium (42nd all-time). The elder Lawrence has failed to miss the podium just 4 times in his 450 Class career, for a 75% podium percentage. He is only 5 points behind Eli Tomac for second in the point standings.
ELI TOMAC: Made his 360th SMX League start and extended his record of SMX League podiums with his 225th coming at Southwick. He has 4 podiums in 5 starts this season, but his average holeshot position of 9.4 through 5 races has forced him to improve a total of 61 positions in order to obtain his 3.3 finishing average per moto.
NOTES: Justin Cooper (4th): Earned his 13th 450 Class top 5 finish in 16 starts. Was fastest qualifier for the third time in 5 races.
Jorge Prado (5th): Secured his first career top 5 finish in both the 450 Class and SMX League with 5-6 results.
RJ Hampshire (6th): Captured the best finish of his rookie season with an 8-4 effort. Has opened the season 5 for 5 in top 10s.
Justin Barcia (9th): Made his first start of the summer with his 97th top 10 finish, tied with Tomac for 4th all-time. Will seek his 200th SMX League top 10 at RedBud.
Cornelius Tondel (17th): First career SMX League and 450 Class start for the Norweigan resulted in 11th in Moto 1 and top 20 overall.
Josh Toth (25th): Talented GNCC racer made second career Pro Motocross start.
Michael Witkowski (28th): Fellow GNCC racer made his first Pro Motocross and SMX League start.Deven Sorensen (34th) and Kevin Buitenhuis (39th): Each made his first career SMX League and 450 Class start.
450 Class: RedBud Facts
- HISTORY LESSON: The first 450 Class race at RedBud was on April 28, 1974, when Kenny Zahrt (Bultaco) dominated both motos. Eventual series champion Gary Jones (Can-am) settled for second overall. Rich Thorwaldson (6th, Suzuki) and Bob Grossi (10th, Husqvarna) were the only riders competing for active OEMs in the top-16.
- HALF CENTURY OF HISTORY: RedBud has held 450 Class rounds in 1974, 1977-1980, 1983-1985, & 1989-current. For 2025, RedBud will host its 46th 450 Class race. The defunct 500cc division was a mainstay at RedBud from 1974-1988. When including all 3 classes there have been 103 rounds of Pro Motocross held at the Michigan venue.
- THE GOAT AT REDBUD: After sweeping RedBud in the 250 Class from 1998-1999, Ricky Carmichael went 2-3 for second overall as a 450 Class rookie in 2000. Sebastian Tortelli’s moto sweep that season, along with Moto 1 in 2007, stand as the only times “The GOAT” was beaten in a RedBud moto. RC won 12 consecutive motos from 2001-2006 and bounced back to win the final moto in 2007 to secure 7 straight RedBud victories.
- CHAMPIONSHIP %: The winner of the 450 Class at RedBud has won the title 26 times in 45 seasons (58%) and 6 of the past 7 years, including Chase Sexton in 2024.
250 Storylines: Southwick Recap
HAIDEN DEEGAN: Extended his points lead to 58 with his 4th 1-1 sweep in 5 rounds. It was his 11th career victory, tying Jeff Ward for 14th all-time. Deegan’s 21st SMX League* win ties him for 33rd all-time with Jason Anderson, Dylan Ferrandis, Ezra Lusk, and Blake Baggett. Deegan has 20 podiums in his first 29 starts (26th all-time).
TOM VIALLE: Earned his 12th podium finish with runner-up result at Southwick and moved up to third in the point standings. He also has 20 career top 5 finishes in 27 starts and 40 SMX League top 5 finishes in 62 starts.
LEVI KITCHEN: Made his 40th career start and 70th SMX League start and earned his 13th podium with 2-4 scores. It was his fourth straight third-place finish. He sits 1 point shy of Vialle for third in the championship.
NOTES: Michael Mosiman (4th): Earned his 12th top 5 finish in 52 starts and his 35th SMX League top 5 finish in 110 starts. It was his best Pro Motocross result since 2022.
Jo Shimoda (5th): Held on to second in the point standings after his 35th top 5 finish. It was also his 50th top 10 finish in 61 starts (17th all-time).
Mikkel Haarup (6th): Career-best finish with 5-6 results and the fourth-best Pro Motocross finish for Triumph in its first 2 seasons.Ryder DiFrancesco (15th): Made his landmark 50th career SMX League start.
250 Class: RedBud Facts
- HISTORY LESSON: The first 250 Class race at RedBud was on May 23, 1976. Bob Hannah (Yamaha) made come-from-behind charges in both motos to usurp reigning champion Marty Smith (Honda) and earn a 1-1 effort. Hannah went on to secure the 1976 title. The 125cc division was the only class held that season at RedBud.
- A HISTORIC CLAIM: Just 15-minutes after Hannah pulled into the pits after his win, AMA referee Chuck McCall impounded Hannah’s winning #39 Yamaha. What had been feared in motocross, and had happened in other types of motorcycle racing, was finally taking place. According to AMA rules, any athlete (Mickey Boone in this situation) could claim any other competitor’s bike. The going price for the Yamaha was $2,000 and Bob quickly put a claim in as well, allowable per the rulebook. Both athletes drew numbers to gain ownership of the machine, from which Hannah prevailed by pulling a “47” compared to Boone’s “42.”
- CHAMPIONSHIP %: After 1976, the 250 Class didn’t return to RedBud until 1981 and has competed there ever since. The 2025 event will be the 47th 250 Class round at the venue. The winner of the 250 Class at RedBud has won the title in 26 times in 46 seasons (57%), including an unprecedented and ongoing 7-year streak where the champion has failed to win at RedBud. Deegan extended the streak with his win during Hunter Lawrence’s 2023 title campaign, while Chance Hymas returned the favor for Honda during Deegan’s title run last season.
- LAROCCO’S LEAP: In the early ‘90s, RedBud’s Tim Ritchie got together with Mike LaRocco to replicate a massive triple step-up jump from LaRocco’s nearby practice track. LaRocco then became the first athlete in any class to clear his infamous namesake jump and did so on a 125cc. The jump continues to be arguably the most famous obstacle in all of motocross.
